Letters
by Ghostwriter
Summary: A school assignment leads to a life-long friendship. Upped the rating to a "T" for language.
1. Casey's Introduction

LETTERS

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Yes, I know I shouldn't be starting another fic when I have three on-going already, but I really wanted to do this crossover and it was the only way I could realistically made it happen. Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and whoever else is affiliated with it. Flashpoint and its characters belong to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. Flashpoint started right when Life With Derek was ending which meant that while Sam was mid-twenties/early thirties, Casey was like seventeen or eighteen and I tried to make things realistic, so I decided to "rewind" so to speak so Casey's going to be thirteen while Sam's eighteen, which I believe is the correct age of eligibility in Canada. I live in the US so I googled it and I apologize if I'm wrong and I encourage you to please tell me. Italics will be Casey's letters and bold with be Sam's letters. Each chapter will alternate between Sam and Casey depending on length. This is gonna be another one of my larger projects as my goal is to through Sam's S.R.U. days.

Casey sat in her seat, drumming her fingers on her desk, waiting for the teacher to come in. She wanted to know what this new assignment was that Mrs. Channing was so excited about. According to her, it was going to be a "cultural experience" for them. She wasn't sure what the woman meant by that, but she was sure that it'd be interesting. Finally, the door opened and the woman-who was five-eight with brown hair and wearing an adult version of the school's uniform-walked in with a large box of stationary and a large stack of photos.

"Class, we're going to have an on-going assignment. And yes, I said "We" because I'm going to be doing it too," she told them.

"Who are we writing letters to?" Casey's cousin Victoria wondered.

"We're going to be writing to the men and women serving in the military and I'll be assigning a pen pal to each of you and there is no switching with each other," she answered, handing each of them stationary and a photo. Victoria looked at her file and made a noise of interest. _I guess she likes the guy she was assigned_, she thought to herself and then turned her attention to her own file and stared at the photo. It was a Caucasian male who appeared to be about eighteen with chestnut blonde hair and the name read Sam Braddock. _He looks so young. I wonder why he's in the Army_, she thought to herself. Well, she supposed that could be her first question. With that, she took out a pen and began writing.

_ Dear Sam, my name is Casey MacDonald and my class is doing a pen-pal assignment and you were the one who was assigned to me. I have a younger sister named Lizzie and my parents are Dennis and Nora MacDonald. If you don't mind me asking, why did you choose to enlist? What was the appeal? Isn't it kind of scary? I can't imagine doing something like that. But I'm glad you are. Thank you for choosing to do something like this. If no one else says it, you'll hear it from me: thank you. Well, I guess I'll write more to you later. Again, thanks for what you were doing._

Casey put the pen down and smiled. She wasn't really sure why, but she had a good feeling about this assignment. Of course if she ever said that out loud, the other girls would just ridicule her. Well…maybe not seeing as how everyone here was an overachiever just like her. You **had** to be to get ahead here, so maybe they were all feeling the same way that she was. And who knew? Maybe she'd learn something more about the guy. And to tell the truth, she was rather excited about it. She hoped that this Sam Braddock guy was a good guy and that he was receptive to the letters. After all, not everyone liked to get letters from kids or even like reading them. For all she knew, this guy probably didn't want to be bothered by her letter. Or maybe he'd laugh at her. She'd just have to wait and see.


	2. Sam's Introduction

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. This is Sam's introduction letter.

Sam settled on his bed and reread the letter that the thirteen-year old girl, Casey MacDonald, had sent him. It was pretty short, but that made sense seeing as how she was just introducing herself to him. _Hmm…I wonder if I should write her back_, he thought to himself. Well, it was for an assignment and he'd hate for her to fail. Plus, he needed someone to write to besides his parents and Natalie. With that, he pulled out a sheet of paper and began writing.

**Dear Casey, first of all, thanks for the letter. It was good to hear from you. So your school's doing a pen-pal program? That's kind of neat. I wish one of my schools had done that. Yes, I said schools. I'm an Army brat and I have a younger sister Natalie, and my parents are Elizabeth and Robert Braddock, but at home we call him "Sir". He insists on it. He's an Army man all the way. In answer to your question, I decided to enlist because I want follow in his footsteps. Plus, I want to make a difference. I figured what better place to do that than the Army? I hope to hear from you again soon and that you're doing well.**

After he finished writing, the young officer put the letter aside, making a mental note to get stamps for the letter. Hearing footsteps, he tensed up and stood up, grabbing his weapon.

"Easy, Sammy," a voice chided and the boy shook his head as his friend walked into the space.

"Sorry, Matt," he apologized.

"It's all good, man," Matthew "Matt" Chambers assured. Hey, he understood his friend's actions as one never knew if they could be attacked. It was better to be on the alert. He then walked over to his friend's space and glanced at the letter he had written.

"Who's Casey?" he wondered.

"A girl from a school called Fletcher's Academy. Apparently they're doing a pen-pal thing and she was assigned to write to me," came the response.

"And you're gonna write back?" Matt asked.

"It's a school assignment. I'm supposed to let her fail?" Sam pointed out.

"Got me there," Matt stated.

"Besides, she seems like a sweet kid," Sam said.

"Well okay then," Matt said.

"Braddock! Chambers! Grab your guns and move your asses!" they heard someone shout and they grabbed their weapons and headed out.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Because these were the introductory chapters, I showed Casey and Sam writing the letters, but in future chapters it'll be them reading the letters they get.


	3. Matt Wants To Nickname You

AUHTOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television. Flashpoint belongs to Media Bell, Pink Sky, Ava Mar, and Mark Ellis. I only own the plot.

Casey sat at her desk nervously, waiting to see if she had gotten anything new from Sam. The pen-pal program had been going on for a few weeks now and she had learned that he had been an Army brat, he and sister Natalie had been raised in the desert, that he had had a younger sister Vickie who had been killed by a car jumping a curb, and that he had joined the Army to make a difference as well as to impress his dad. She in turn had told him about her family, her interest in dancing and singing, that Fletcher's Academy was an all-girls private school, and how she loved and thrived on the competition. Okay, so it was probably a little boring to him, but he didn't seem to mind. In fact, he had even encouraged her to tell him more if she wanted to. _I'm so glad he's receptive to this_, she thought to herself. She had been pretty nervous about it, but Sam was pretty nice and she was hoping that she had gotten a new letter, though that wasn't to say that she didn't understand not getting mail due to events that would be beyond his control. The door opened and everyone turned to watch as Mrs. Channing walked in, a small pile of letters in her hands and she handed them out. When she got hers, Casey smiled and opened the letter.

** Hey Casey, hey are things going? Things are good here, if a little boring. But I guess that's a good thing, you know? I'm really glad that I have someone else to write to. I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't mind hearing from Mom and Natalie, but I've been getting a lot of letters/advice from my dad. I love the guy, but sometimes it's just a lot of pressure-a lot to live up to. I don't wanna let him down, you know? And of course there's guys who think I only got in because of him, which is bogus! I mean, seriously? I worked my ass off! I mean…butt…sorry. Slipped out. Oh by the way, how's school going? I know you had a test this week and that you were pretty nervous about it…or have you not taken it yet? Well, if you ****have**** taken it, I bet you did awesome, and if you haven't good luck, you'll be fine. Oh, Matt says "Hi" by the way. And he's still convinced that we need to come up with a nickname for you, and I keep telling him that not everyone needs or want a nickname, but you know Matt. He wants to have a nickname for ****everyone****. At least I got him to stop calling me "Sammy-Boy." C.O's calling. Gotta go.**

Casey laughed and shook her head at the letter. _Oh, Sam_, she thought to herself. He was nuts sometimes, but not as nuts as his best friend Matt was. And to be perfectly honest, she didn't mind the fact that the boy wanted to give her a nickname and actually thought it was pretty cool, which was something she'd have to tell Sam sometime. And now it was time for her to start responding to his letter. Well, if the postmark was anything to go by, he was still in the same place as last time, so that made things easy. Okay then, she had a plan. It was time to get to work.


	4. Pick Me Up

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Flashpoint belongs to Media Bell, Pink Sky, Ava Mar, and Mark Ellis. I only own the plot.

Sam trudged up to where he was staying and he flopped onto his bunk. They were **finally** getting some action, and he loved it, but it could be a pain sometimes. It was all go, go, go. He needed a breather every once in a while. Couldn't he just get that for a little bit? His musings were interrupted as he heard footsteps and he looked to see Matt who looked just as tired as he did.

"You look like Hell," he stated.

"Screw you," came the retort.

"You're not really my type, man," his friend responded. The two boys laughed and shook their heads.

"But I get what you mean. It's been crazy lately," Matt stated. Then, "Have you gotten a letter from Casey?"

"No, not yet," Sam replied, his lips curving into a grin at the mention of his pen-pal. She was a good kid and her letters made everything a little bit more bearable. To be perfectly honest, he had been a bit hesitant to answer the girl's letter seeing as how she was so young and he didn't want his Army buddies getting the wrong idea. But they hadn't. In fact, some of them had actually gotten similar letters and were writing to the people who had written them. Matt was about to say something more when a few of their squad mates came traipsing in, each one collapsing on their respective bunks without a single word. Yup. They were all tired.

"I am dead," one of their friends stated.

"Same," Matt and Sam chorused. Their conversation was interrupted when their commanding officer came in, holding various envelopes.

"Mail call boys," he said and then handed them their letters. Sam opened up the letter from Casey and to his surprise, two photos dropped out of the letter. _What's this?_ he wondered, reaching over to pick them up. He then grinned as he noticed that one of the pictures was of her in a dance uniform. She had apparently had a recital recently. His gaze then fell to the other photo which showed the girl holding up a test and he smiled. That was probably the test she had told him about. He then turned his attention to the letter itself.

_ Hey Sam, how are you doing? This week's been crazy. We got a lot of homework and I've just felt really bogged down. Don't get me wrong, I love the challenge, but sometimes it just feels like a lot, you know? But enough about that, as you can see, from the photos, I aced my test and had a dance recital. I had a lot of fun with the recital. There's just nothing like getting up on stage in front of everyone. It's like a whole different world when I'm performing. Do you have anything that gives you the same feeling, or is that what the Army's like for you? I think I may want to be a dancer when I get older, but I'm not sure. I'm fairly good at it and I really enjoy it, so yeah, maybe. Other than that, nothing all that exciting's been going on. I've just basically been concentrating on school. We're going on a fieldtrip soon, so that's going to be pretty cool. Of course, I don't think any of the other girls would agree with me as we're going to a museum, but I think it is and don't really care __**what**__ they think. It's weird, but a lot of the girls have stated that being a pen-pal is hard or uninteresting. I have no idea what they're talking about! I'm having a blast getting to know you. Getting a letter from you telling me all about your day has become the highlight of my day. Stay safe out there. Casey._

Sam grinned. He had needed this after today. Things had been tough and he had been in a bit of a mood, but Casey had managed to make the day better. Like her, he was having a blast writing to her and on days like today, a letter like the one he had just received made everything totally worth it.


	5. Nickname

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television. Flashpoint belongs Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Pink Sky, and Media Bell. I only own the plot.

It was lunchtime by the time Casey had gotten a minute to look at the letter she had gotten from Sam. She usually had a few minutes in class, but she had fallen a little behind this week, which did **not** sit well with her, so she had used the time to catch up. It had been worth it though as she was back on top of things, which was how she liked it. And now that she had a moment to herself, she could read the letter that she had gotten. _I wonder what's been going on lately_, she thought to herself. She hadn't heard from him in a while, and while she understood that someone serving couldn't always write a letter to some high school kid, she couldn't help but feeling a little worried. For all she knew, something could have happened to him. And if something ever **did** happen to him, she wasn't really sure **what** she'd do. Sam had become a really good friend to her and she'd be devastated if she ever lost him. After making sure her food tray was far enough away from the edge, Casey opened the letter and began reading.

** Hey Casey, sorry you haven't heard from in a while. Things have just been really crazy over here. But don't be worried. I'm alive. If anything ever happened to me, I'd have Matt or someone else contact you. I wouldn't want you to worry about me. Oh, and speaking of Matt, he's ****finally**** come up with a nickname for you: Stage Girl-because you love to dance. I know, I know, it's dorky and I told him that it wasn't necessary, but I he insisted, so now you're Stage Girl. Sorry about that. If you hate it, take it up with him. He also came up with a nickname for ****me****-Flash, because of how quickly I hauled ass from a building we were doing a reccy on a couple of days ago. It had a nice little surprise waiting for the next person who entered it, so yeah, I hauled ass. But don't worry I'm fine, just a little banged up. Hope you're doing well and I hope to hear from you again soon.**

Casey let out a sigh of relief after reading the letter. She was glad that Sam was all right. She had been worried and this letter had alleviated her fears, which she was grateful for. She then reread the part about the nickname and laughed. Stage Girl. She liked it. She **did** love to dance and perform for people, so it really fit. She wasn't really sure how she felt about the fact that Sam had just admitted that he had nearly died, but it wasn't like she could say that she didn't know it was a possibility as he **was** in the Army. She just hoped that it wouldn't happen to him. She then gave herself a mental shake and once more reread the letter, her lips curving into a smile.


	6. Trouble

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television. Flashpoint belongs Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Pink Sky, and Media Bell. I only own the plot.

Sam blew out a breath as his mind raced with the events that were transpiring. He couldn't believe that he and Matt were in the middle of a battle zone. Well, okay, that wasn't entirely true. He could believe it as he had been in this situation a few times before. It didn't mean that it felt any less surreal. But at least he had something to get him through all the drudgery. And he could readily admit that Casey's letters **had** been getting him through. If it wasn't for the letters that they had been sharing, Sam was sure he would've gone crazy. But instead, he was feeling grounded, even with the fact that he was currently dodging bullets and returning fire. _Oh, man! I really hope I don't get killed_, he thought to himself. Yeah, it was a possibility especially with the way the day was going, but he didn't want to go out today. Hell, he didn't want go out **any** day. A shot rang out and he ducked and quickly returned fire, Matt doing the same right beside him.

"You gonna tell Casey about this?" Matt queried.

"Hell, no! She'd freak," Sam replied. And that was the last thing he wanted to do. Then there was another barrage of bullets and the two ducked. "Matt, I think we could use an extraction here, man," he said. With that, Matt activated his radio and quickly spoke into it, giving their location and their situation, and he was told that the rest of the unit would be their soon.

"All right. We're going to be okay," Matt muttered. He and Sam were getting out of here. Sam and Matt weren't sure how much longer they were there, but they soon heard more firing from weapons similar to theirs and they were relieved to see their squad mates coming at them even as the other side kept firing.

"Braddock, Chambers, you all right?" their commanding officer asked.

"Better now," came the response.

"Come on. Let's get out of here," the older man stated.

"Sounds good to me," the two chorused. Then, they continued firing and ran towards the jeep that had come for them, and drove off.

"You two need to get checked out?" the commanding officer asked.

"Yes," Matt replied before Sam could say anything.

"All right. I'll notify the doc," the man stated. "Oh, by the way, mail for you, Braddock," he said, handing him an envelope. Sam opened the envelope and pulled out the letter.

_ Hey Sam, I know I didn't say it in my last letter, but thanks for letting me know why I hadn't heard from you. I have to admit, I __was__ pretty worried, so it's good to know that you're safe. I've been looking forward to your letters even more these days. My parents have been fighting and even though they try to pretend that everything's fine, but Lizzie and I can tell something's up. I've been assuring Lizzie that everything's going to be okay, but I'm not really sure. They started fighting a few weeks ago and I just don't know what to do. What am I supposed to do? I don't mean to burden you with all of this, but I just-I'm not sure what to do. I've heard them argue before, but it's never been like this. Dad's been working so many hours and he doesn't have time for us anymore. Mom just wants him to come home more often…and so do I. Is that so much to ask? I don't know why he's started working so much and I just don't know what to tell Lizzie. Well, gotta go. Again, sorry for burdening you with all of this. Casey._

_Oh, kiddo_, Sam thought to himself. He couldn't even imagine what she must've been going through. Yeah, there had been times that Dad had worked longer tours and hours than he usually did, but that was usually when he was trying to bury pain, such as after Vickie died. He then blew out a breath and tried to think of what he could say to her in his next letter. It sounded like she could use some advice and he was going to make sure that he gave some that was good.


	7. Encouragement

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television. Flashpoint belongs Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Pink Sky, and Media Bell. I only own the plot.

Casey trudged into her room and flopped onto her bed. She had gotten a letter from Sam this morning in class and instead of reading it at school, she had opted to wait until she was home. She had a feeling that she was going to need it. She hadn't told the older man yet but her parents fights had gotten worse in the last couple of weeks. In fact, it seemed like they were fighting even more now. Dad was spending more time at the office and Mom was tired of him throwing himself into his work. Granted, Casey was in complete agreement with her mother, but it didn't mean that she wanted to hear them shouting at each other. Especially when Lizzie was in the house. She was **much** too young to have to worry about this kind of stuff. But what could she do? It wasn't like she could make them stop fighting or anything. The girl let out a sigh and then opened the letter as she made herself comfortable on her bed.

**Hey Casey. Man, I'm sorry you and your sister are having a rough time. It sucks when parents fight. I'm sure everything will work out, so just hang in there. Matt and I are doing okay, just as busy as ever. And yes, we're staying as safe as we can. We wouldn't want our Stage Girl to worry. Oh, Matt wanted me to tell you about the prank we played on one of our fellow officers. He claims that this will improve your mood. Anyways, the guy was bragging about he could withstand any kind of food no matter how hot it was, so Matt decided to test it out. He got something that's like the Afghanistan version of hot sauce and put it on the guy's ration. Dude nearly jumped out of his seat after the first bite. After that, he didn't brag about his food tolerance. So other than your parents fighting, how have you been? Anything new and exciting going on? How's your dancing going? Have you had any new recitals? Man, I'm so out of touch! It's almost enough to make me want to leave the Army. Almost, but not quite. For one thing, my dad would probably kill me. He's an Army man through and through. Remind me to tell you some of the things we did growing up sometime. I'm sure you'd get a kick out of those stories. Things are going as well as you can expect them to go. Let me tell you, if you ever want life experience, just join the Army. You'll get all the life experience you'll ever want or need. Listen to me, I make it sound like I hate what I'm doing when that couldn't be any further from the truth. I love it. I'm making a difference, you know? I'm just glad that I'm doing this with a group of guys who have become my best friends. I've heard horror stories about squads that can barely tolerate each other and I can't even imagine being in a group like that. I'll write you soon. And again, just hang in there.**

Casey smiled as she finished reading the letter. This was why she had started waiting until the end of the day to read Sam's letters. She was always in a good mood until her parents started fighting and they were **always** fighting these days. Well, at least she had someone she could talk to when everything got to be too much. And that meant more to her than he would **ever** know…


	8. Birthday Wishes

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Media Bell, Pink Sky, and Ava Mar.

Sam winced as Matt wrapped the gauze around the wound.

"That's too tight," he complained.

"Baby," Matt accused.

"Sadist," Sam shot back and his friend chuckled.

"Some way to spend your birthday, huh, man?" his friend asked.

"I could think of better ways," came the response and Matt laughed again.

"You know, it's too bad this won't scar. Chicks dig 'em," he stated and his friend shook his head.

"Not really what I'm worrying about right now," he told him.

"Yeah, yeah. I know," the other man stated. When Matt was finished dressing the wound, Sam carefully moved his arm. _Okay, good. Still mobile_, he thought to himself. Yeah, they had done a check before taking care of the wound, but he was paranoid. Almost as if he knew what his friend was thinking Matt grinned. "Just be glad it wasn't your shooting arm," he said.

"I **am**. Believe me, I am," Sam responded. If his shooting arm had been injured, he would've been screwed. As it was, he was lucky enough with the location of the bullet. An inch either way and he would've been a one-armed man. And call him vain or whatever, but he hadn't been in the mood to go through life with just one arm. Sam was about to say more when another member of their squad came up with a couple of packages in his hands.

"Do…we need a bomb squad?" Matt asked, only half-joking. Hey, you couldn't blame him being cautious given their circumstances.

"All checked out. Nothing suspicious," the man replied. "It's just something from your pen-pal and your folks," he said, giving the packages to Sam.

"Thanks, man," Sam responded as he took the packages. Then, he carefully opened the first one and was surprised to find a small figure on a chain.

"Why'd she send you Saint George? You're not Catholic," Matt commented.

"Well, neither are you, but you recognized it," Sam pointed out.

"Touché," Matt said with a chuckle. Sam then rolled his eyes and pulled the letter out and made himself comfortable. Well, as comfortable as he could in his surroundings.

_ Hey Sam. Happy birthday! I know you're probably not expecting me to remember but I did. And I know you're not Catholic, so you're probably confused as to why I sent you Saint George. I was doing some research and learned that he was the Patron saint of soldiers and it's believed that he's their protector. And if anyone deserves a protector, it's __**you**__. It's just my way of saying that I'm thinking of you and thank you for your service. Please continue to be safe. Casey._

After he finished reading the letter, Sam smiled. To be honest, he had needed that. And okay, the letter was short, but at least he had gotten something from her. And he was glad to get a gift from her as he hadn't been expecting one. Not because he didn't think she'd remember as she surmised, but because it hadn't occurred to him that she'd feel that comfortable with him to do something like that. But he was glad that she **did** feel comfortable enough to send him something. Still smiling, he took the chain, unfastened it, and then placed it around his neck, refastening the clasp. Sure he wasn't very religious and he wasn't sure if there was a higher power looking after him, but Casey had cared enough to send it to him, and hey, everyone could use a protector, right? So yeah, he'd wear it with pride.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 2

For the record, I'm not Catholic and no offense was intended by Casey giving Sam a Saint George necklace when neither one of them are Catholic.


	9. Reassurance

DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Media Bell, Pink Sky, and Ava Mar. I only own the plot.

As her parents continued to argue, Casey shut the door and then looked at Lizzie who was trying not to cry. Without a word, Casey opened her arms and Lizzie ran to her, sniffling. The older girl stroked her sister's hair and made soft shushing noises. _Man, can't they see what this is doing to her?_ she wondered. Lizzie buried her face into Casey's shoulder and finally let herself cry. She couldn't believe this was happening. Why were Mom and Dad fighting so much? Didn't they care about each other anymore? And if not, why not? What had gone wrong? They had been so in love before. As Lizzie continued to cry, Casey sat down on her bed, saying soft, soothing words. As she did so, she caught sight of an opened envelope. Sam. She **still** hadn't read the letter he had sent her.

"Hey, you wanna hear what Sam has to say?" she asked. Lizzie just shrugged and Casey decided to take that as a "Yes". She then released her hold on her sister, walked to the bed, picked up the envelope, and opened it to reveal a letter. She sat on the bed, the younger girl, sitting beside her as she unfolded the letter.

**Hey Casey. Things are kind of crazy over here lately and Matt and I have barely gotten a chance to catch our breaths. And isn't that always the way? We spent so much time complaining that we were bored when we first started and now we're wishing that we could go back to that. It's too bad that no one's invented a time machine so that we ****could**** go back when we wanted to, but hey, maybe someday, right? I'm sorry that your parents' fighting has gotten worse. I can't even imagine what that must be like. I mean, yeah, my parents fight sometimes, but nothing like what you're describing. It must be Hell. Well, just know that Matt and I are here for you if you and Lizzie ever want to talk. I'm not really sure if we could give you any advice, but if you ever need an ear, we're here. So, did I tell you about the newest member of our squad? Her name's Megan Oxford and she's a firecracker. You'd love her. Some of the guys are saying that she won't last very long and are placing bets on how long it'll be before she crashes and burns, but not me and Matt. No, we're taking bets on how long it'll be before she kicks all their asses. She's a pretty tough cookie and I can't wait to see her prove these guys wrong. Whoa. Gotta go. Talk to you later, and again, you and Lizzie can always talk to me and Matt.**

After she was finished, she looked to Lizzie who had just snuggled up to her as she had read the letter.

"Feel better?" the older girl asked and her sister nodded. "Good," she told her. Yeah, it had been **exactly** what they had needed. Sam had done a pretty good job at taking her mind off of what was going on at home while also assuring her that he'd be there for them if they needed him. It didn't surprise Casey that Sam had included Lizzie in the letter as she had told him how the fights had been affecting the younger girl. She then bit her lip and glanced at the letter again. There were times when she didn't know **what** she was going to do and she was **definitely** grateful to Sam for being there. With him in her corner, she had a feeling that she could handle anything.


	10. Venting

DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Media Bell, Pink Sky, and Ava Mar. I only own the plot.

Sam blew out a breath as he ran his fingers through his hair as he lay down on his cot. For once, they had a chance to breathe. Of course, that could have something to do with the fact that they had been assigned to a new place sometime ago. While he mostly didn't mind this as he understood it was just part of the Army life, but a small part of him was worried that he had missed a letter-or even letters-from Casey, which was entirely possible given the fact that he had just been reassigned. But he was hoping that there was some way to reach her. He liked corresponding with her and he **really** didn't want it to end, which was why he had sent her a new letter from his new address as quickly as possible, though he wasn't sure that there was any guarantee that their postal service-what there was of it-had gotten it out. Oh well. He was sure to find out sooner or later whether or not his letter had reached her. Hearing footsteps approach, he quickly sat up, reaching for the gun that was by his bed.

"Easy, Braddock. Just bringing the mail," a male voice stated.

"Well…" he said, his voice trailing off as an older officer walked in.

"I get it," the other man said. He then handed the boy a few pieces of mail and then walked out. Sam then made himself as comfortable as he could on the cot and opened the first letter.

_Hey Sam, I really hope this gets to you, though I'm not sure it will. For all I know this address is old now. Well, if it gets to you, yay. Okay, so I guess you're wondering what's going on in my life. Well, Mom and Dad have decided to get a divorce. It sucks, but if it'll stop them from fighting, I'm all for it. I just want things to be okay again, you know? Or…as okay as they can get when your parents are at each other's throats all the_ time. _Have you ever felt that way? Have you just wanted to scream and scream until no sound came out? I would __love__ to, but I have to stay strong for Lizzie_. _ I just wish I knew what to do, you know? And I don't even know if there __is__ anything I can do! I just want this all to stop! And theoretically, the divorce would do that, but I also want my parents together. Is that so much to ask? What do you think I should do? Sorry for whining so much. I just had to get it out. I'll talk to you later, Casey._

Sam winced internally as he finished reading the letter. That sounded really bad. If he was reading this right, Casey was barely hanging on. Well, he wasn't going to just leave her hanging like this. It wasn't his way. She could use a friend right now and he was going to provide her with one. With that, he rummaged around his things until he found a pen and a piece of paper. Then, he started writing.


	11. Comfort

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

BookLover1182: Yes, they do. Thanks. Here's more.

Genbo: Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying it. Here's more.

JamForever: Thanks. Well, here you go.

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Casey drummed her fingers on her desk as she waited for Mrs. Channing to come in. She hadn't been this bored since their assignment had first started. But hey, at least she probably wouldn't have to wait **too** long. She couldn't believe that so much had happened, the main thing being her parents' divorce. They had been so happy at one time, and then it had all stopped. Why? Well, it wasn't like she had an answer to that. The only thing she could do was deal with it. And she was **trying** to. It was hard though. She didn't like that things had changed. She wanted her parents together like they were supposed to be. On the other hand, they hadn't really fought as much since the divorce, and she was grateful for that, but it made her wonder why they couldn't be happy together. What had changed exactly? She just didn't understand it. Love was supposed to be forever, right? So how come it wasn't like that for her parents? She then blew out another breath as she gave herself a mental shake. There was no need to go down this road. They were divorced. It was over and done with. She just had to deal with it and move on. It wasn't like she was the only kid in the universe with divorced parents. Oh, it though! How it hurt! She **still** couldn't believe it! She just wanted everything back to normal. But she knew that wasn't going to happen. Mom and Dad had gotten divorced and had gone on with their lives. So logically, she and Lizzie would have to do the same. But that was easier said than done. Her reverie was broken by the door opening and she watched as Mrs. Channing came in and then situated her workbooks before sorting out the letters that she had. _I hope one of those are mine_, the girl thought. Truth be told, she could use a pick me up. But of course, she knew that she couldn't **always** expect a letter from Sam. He was in a war zone, fighting for his life. Still, she hoped that she **did** get one today. After Mrs. Channing had sorted through everything, she stood up and then handed the letters out. To Casey's relief, she was one of the ones who got a letter. She opened the envelope and then settled back in her seat, making herself comfortable as she read what her friend had said.

**Hey Casey. I'm ****so**** sorry about the divorce. Damn, that's gotta suck. I can't even imagine what you're going through right now. Any time you need to vent, just write me. I don't** **care. I'm here for you. I know it probably seems like everything's falling apart, but keep your chin up. You can make it through. You're tough. You're our Stage Girl. I know that I can't really say anything to make you feel better, but I ****can**** offer friendship and support. Matt and I are here for you. Always know that. No matter what happens, you can always write me. Hang in there.**

Casey smiled at the words. Sure the letter was short, but it spoke volumes. Truth be told, she hadn't really felt like she had anyone to turn to since she was trying to be strong for Lizzie. It wasn't like her friends could really understand as their parents were still married. So yeah, it had been hard for her. But thank goodness for Sam and Matt. Without them, she wasn't quite sure if she would've been able to handle the stress from all of the fighting that Mom and Dad had done. And now she had the added stress of pretending that she wasn't dying inside at the fact that her parents weren't together anymore. But she didn't have to pretend with Sam or Matt. And that meant a lot to her…


	12. Another Day, Another Letter

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BookLover1182: Thanks, I'm kind of loving it myself. I just may do that as another fic.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Sam trudged into the space he was sharing with Matt and sat down on his bunk. He was dead on his feet. But they had done well today and there hadn't been any casualties on their side, which, you know, was always a plus. But on the other side of things, he was hoping that it'd slow down a little. Then again, he was in a war zone, so of course things would be hectic. _Man, why'd I sign up for this again?_ he wondered as he sat down. Almost immediately, he felt something poking him and he shifted a little, and he saw what looked like a letter. _Oooh, the family or Casey?_ he wondered and then looked at the address and grinned when he saw that it was Casey's address. He opened it and made himself comfortable as he opened the letter and prepared to read it. Now what did **she** have to say?

_Hey Sam, hope you're doing good. I'm dealing. Mom, Lizzie, and I moved. It's a little different, but it's okay. I mean, yeah, I miss Daddy, but they're at least trying to be civil to one another which I'm grateful for. It's still hard but at least we're dealing. I'm just glad that the fighting's stopped. Well, for the most part. I mean, yeah, they bicker, but it's not as bad. I just wish that it wasn't so hard for Lizzie. She misses Dad. She gets why they divorced, but she still misses him. But on to more pleasant_ _things, I aced my last two tests, and dancing's going good. I had a recital last week and it went really well. You know, if you're ever in my part of the neighborhood during one of my recitals, you and Matt should totally come. I mean, if you guys_ want. _No pressure. Other than that, nothing really important or exciting's going on. But I __do__ want to think you for being there for me. I know it's not fun to always hear me complain when you're already going through so much. So thanks for that. Casey._

Sam smiled softly as he put the letter down. It was good to see that she was doing better. Granted, he didn't expect her to get over her parents' divorce just like **that**-what kid would?-but he was relieved that she didn't seem so distressed anymore. And he liked the idea of seeing her dance. He and Matt would have to do so sometime. Well you know, if they ever got the chance. Which wasn't going to happen anytime soon, but it was **definitely** something to look forward to. Besides, it might be fun. But he'd only admit that to Matt. No one else would understand and would just call him a wuss. Not that he really cared. Well, not much. Hearing footsteps, he looked up to see Matt.

"What's that?" he wondered.

"Casey's latest letter," came the response.

"Oooh, I wanna read!" With a small scoff of laughter, Sam handed the letter to his friend and watched as he sat down to read it.


	13. A New Chapter

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BookLover1182: Well, we'll see if that happens.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Casey blew out a breath as she leaned back in her seat. She couldn't believe that it had been practically a year since she and Sam had started writing to one another. They hadn't quite hit the one year mark yet, but it was coming up pretty soon. And while a lot of her classmates had lost interest in the project and were just writing their letters because they **had** to, Casey was still enjoying the letters she got from Sam. She loved it when he and Matt updated her on their lives. It was almost like having brothers. She hadn't thought that she'd want brothers, but if they were anything like Sam or Matt, she could handle that. And right now, she was waiting to see if she had a letter from her brothers. _I wonder how they're doing_, she thought to herself. Okay, granted, the last letter she had received had assured her that they were both all right, but she couldn't help but worry. From the little Sam had told her, she had gathered that things were pretty bad where they were right now, and to be perfectly honest, she **hated** the thought that they could be in danger. However, it made her proud that they were brave enough to fight for what they believed in. Not a lot of people had that kind of courage. Yes, it was easy to talk about, but until you were in the situation, you just never knew how you'd react. Okay, her thoughts were getting weird here. Oh well. That tended to happen a lot now that she was corresponding with them both. The door opening broke Casey out of her reverie and she watched as Mrs. Channing walked in, some envelopes in her hands. The girl watched and waited as her classmates got their letters and then, she grinned as an envelope was placed on her desk. With a smile, Casey picked the envelope up and opened it to reveal a letter.

**Good news! Good news! Man, I can't believe this has happened! It's awesome! Man, I'm still jazzed! **

_What's got him so excited?_ she wondered. Well, she supposed that there was only one way to find out: read on.

**Matt and I've been in this new unit for a few weeks now and I ****still**** can't believe this! Okay, you know we had gone on some missions and stuff, well, I guess that caught the attention of a unit called JTF2 and they met with us, said they were willing to fast track us. For me, that was probably cause of my dad, but I didn't really care. It was the chance of a lifetime and I'm glad we took them up on their offer. I may not be able to tell you ****everything**** we do, but I'll tell you as much as I can. Well, I gotta go. I'll keep you updated.**

_Oh my gosh! That sounds really cool!_ Casey thought to herself. She hadn't even heard of this unit that Sam was talking about, but if they were willing to move quickly to get him in, he must've really impressed someone. Then again, he had mentioned his dad having influence, but still, she believed that the bulk of their reasoning came from his own merits. And she couldn't be happier for him.


	14. Dead Tired

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BookLover1182: Sorry this isn't soon enough. Yeah, I love it too.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Sam sank to the ground, his breath labored as he leaned against the wall. _Damn, what a day_, he thought to himself. The JTF2 was more intense than he had thought it would be. Not that he regretted joining them of course, but he was seeing things that were a lot worse than what he had seen when he and Matt had been in the regular army. And today had been crazy. It was times like this that he wished that a part of him wished that he hadn't joined the army. Maybe he should've become a cop or something. Yeah, a cop. And maybe he could find himself a sexy sniper chick who could kick his ass. Yeah, that would be amazing. Not that he was a masochist by any means. He just wanted someone who he could share his life with. Was that really so bad? Or was he just over-analyzing things again? Well, wouldn't be the first time. He then turned his gaze to his bed. He had been so exhausted that he had just parked himself on the floor and hadn't noticed anything. But now, he could see that there was a letter on his bed, which meant that either his family or Casey had written him. Well then, he should probably see what they had to say. But he was so tired. Ah, the hell with it. He forced himself up, trudged over to the bed, and then sat down as he picked up the letter and carefully opened it, smiling when he saw the familiar handwriting. _It was Casey. Man, I can't believe that it's practically been a year since we started this_, he thought to himself. It seemed like yesterday that he had gotten the letter that she had sent to him, introducing herself. And he had been so worried about responding, not wanting to come across as a creeper by writing to him since she was so young. But he had decided to go ahead and respond seeing as how there were other guys in his unit who had gotten letters. And even though the others had stopped writing to their pen-pals, he and Casey had kept it up. What could he say? The letters got him through the tough days. He then made himself comfortable as he opened the letter all the way. _Let's see what she's got to say today_, he mused to himself.

_Hey Sam. I know I haven't said it yet, but congratulations on the new unit. That's so cool. Look at you: Samtastic. I hope you're enjoying the work even if it's hard and you can't tell me anything. Can you believe it's almost been a year since we've started writing to each other? Thanks for that by the way. Honestly, I don't know how I would've made it through everything if it wasn't for you. I honestly thought I was going to go crazy pretending everything was fine when it wasn't. I just-I felt like I had to be strong, you know? I mean, Lizzie was counting on me and I couldn't let her see how much everything was killing me. But it helped-knowing that I could tell you what I was feeling. But enough of that depressing crap. We can forget that. I'm still taking dance of course. That's not really gonna change. Some of the routines are a bit more intense now, but I love it. I think I might want to be a dancer when I get older. Okay, so it's not the most glamorous of careers, but it's something that I love to do. And isn't that the most important factor when you're doing something? That you love it? Sorry there's not really a lot to say right now. Hopefully I'll have more next time. Casey. _

Sam let out a small scoff of laughter as he shook his head. Casey didn't need to thank him for being a friend. He had been happy to do it. But the fact that she had voiced her appreciation did feel good, though he was a bit concerned that she had basically glossed over her feelings on her parents' divorce. There was no way he could ever know how she felt as his parents were still very much in love, but he also knew that it wasn't healthy for her to ignore her own feelings about things. _That's something I'll have to talk to her about_, he thought to himself. And he'd start that letter. You know, just as soon as he had the energy to even move…


	15. Here For You

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BookLover1182: Thanks. Here's an update.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

At the end of her school day, Casey went to her locker and put her books in her backpack, being mindful of the envelope that she had gotten earlier that morning. It was another letter from Sam but today had been so hectic, that she hadn't gotten a chance to sit down and look at it. Well, she'd look at it when she got home. It'd give her something to look forward to. And truth be told, she could hardly wait. His letters had very quickly become the bright spot in her day when she was down. Not that she was down today really, but it **had** been a long day, so news from Sam-and Matt—would be like having a quick breather. But she'd have to wait until they got home. _Don't wanna wait_, she thought to herself. But she liked to. Everyone else was too damn nosy. And that really got on her nerves. Most everyone else had pretty much stopped writing to their pen-pals and then seemed to expect her to share what she had gotten from Sam. Yeah, totally not happening. If they wanted to know things, they could write to their own pen-pals. Harsh, maybe, but it was how she felt. She then pushed the thought away and got on the bus that took her home. Once she was home, she went to her room, put everything away, and then settled down on the bed as she opened the letter.

**Hey Casey, things are going good here. Hectic, but good. I can't really tell you everything, sorry, but I promise you I'm staying as safe as I can. And don't worry, Matt's watching my six. Or, you know my back. Sorry. That's just so common to say and it just slipped out. Yeah, yeah, I know you don't care. Matt's doing good. I think he might be trying to start something with Megan, but from what I can tell, she's only interested in him as a friend. And besides, I think she's seeing someone else, but I'm not sure on that. But you know Matt.**

At this, Casey chuckled. Yeah, she knew Matt. Maybe not as well as Sam, but she knew him pretty well thanks to the letters she had gotten. And so he was attracted to the girl who was in his old unit, huh? That was pretty cool.

**I also wanted to make sure you were okay. In your last letter, you just glossed over your feelings about your parents' divorce. You know you don't have to do that with me. Whatever you're feeling, you can tell me. Not that you ****have**** to, but you ****can**** if you want to. We're friends and part of being friends is being there for each other when the other vents. I know that I can do that with you and I hope that you know that you can do the same with me. But again, you don't have to. Not trying to pry, just putting the offer out there. **

Casey bit her lip. _Man, how'd he know that I was trying to hide from him?_ she wondered. She had been so sure that the last thing he wanted was having some kid whining about how her life sucked because her parents didn't want to be together anymore. But then again, she should've known that the older boy wouldn't think anything of the sort. After all, they had gotten to know each other really well, so of course he would want to hear about how she was feeling. With a sigh, she turned her gaze to the next line.

**I don't know if I've told you this recently, but your friendship has meant a lot to me-and to Matt. There have been some hard times that neither of us were sure we'd get through and then a letter or card from you would show up and everything would be a little more bearable. You've really been there for us, even though we've never actually** **met**. **Thank you for that. Sorry to cut this short, Stage Girl. Gotta go.**

When she finished reading the letter, Casey let out a small scoff of laughter and shook her head. He was calling three paragraphs short? It seemed like a pretty good-sized letter to her, but who was she to argue with him? _Man, if it wasn't for Sam and Matt, I'm not really sure __**what**__ I would've done by now_, she thought to herself. They had really helped her some tough times, just as Sam said that she had done for them. And for that, she was **extremely** grateful…


	16. Distraction

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BookLover1182: Thanks. Well, maybe someday. Haven't decided.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Sam winced and tried to keep the weight off of his injured leg as Matt helped him into the doctor's tent. Damn, he was in pain.

"All right. Hold on. We're almost there," Matt told him. "Man, I tell ya, I've seen you do some crazy crap, but this takes the cake."

"Saved your ass."

"Touché." Sam gave his friend a weak grin, which was returned. Despite the result of his actions, he would most likely do it again if it the situation called for it. Matt was his best friend and there was no way he was going to let him die. So yeah, he had gone in there guns blazing and the fact that he had only managed to get shot twice was nothing short of miraculous. Of course, now he was in need of the Army doctor's services, so he supposed that was consequence enough. Not that he regretted what he had done, mind you. How could he ever regret saving his best friend's life? But it still didn't change the fact that he was in a fair amount of pain. And that was the whole reason Matt had brought him here: to get him patched up. Then, their conversation dropped as a man came into the tent to meet them.

"I swear, between the two of you, I could probably retire if we were civilians," he commented and the two friends laughed.

"We aim to please, Doc," Sam quipped.

"Your sense of humor's intact. Good," the doctor approved. If Braddock's demeanor had been different from what it normally was, he would've been worried. But at least he knew he didn't have to be. Sam was laid down and the doctor went to work in digging the bullets out, causing the younger man to wince. Seeing this, Matt reached into his friend's pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper.

_Hey Sam. Thanks for what you told me. Truth is, I just didn't want to sound like I was whining._

Sam let out a scoff at the line. Casey, whine? Who was she kidding? She didn't whine. Vent, yeah, but never whine.

_But I'm glad you feel that I can talk to you about anything. You and Matt have become my best friends through all of this. Other kids try to understand, but they're all starting to think that I should just accept that Mom and Dad are divorced and move on. But how can I? I want them to get back together. Yeah, stupid, but it's how I feel._

"I don't blame her. No one wants their parents to split up," the doctor commented and both Sam and Matt nodded. The man **definitely** had a point. Not that they knew how that felt as their parents were still together, but they could certainly empathize with the girl.

_Anyways, I hope you and Matt are still staying safe. Even though I hate the fact that you guys constantly have to put yourselves in danger, I'm grateful for everything you do. I know that you can't tell me everything, but just know that even if no one else says it, I'm proud of you both._

Sam gritted his teeth, focusing on Casey's words as the last bullet was pulled out. He was probably going to have one hell of a scar from this, if not more, but at least he was alive. And Matt reading Casey's letter had helped him to focus on something other than the pain he was in, so he was grateful for that. Especially since he hadn't been able to have any anesthesia or even a quick swig of a stiff drink. there hadn't been a run this week so he was bit hell out of luck, to put it mildly. But Matt had managed to distract him. And that was all that mattered: the distraction.


	17. Checking In

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BookLover1182: Thanks. Glad you're enjoying it.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Life With Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Ava Mar, Media Bell, and Pink Sky. I only own the stuff you don't recognize.

Casey let out a sigh as she trudged into her house behind her sister and mother. It had been another long day and a part of her just wanted to want to crash on her bed. But she couldn't. She still had a little bit of homework to do. But maybe she could take a nap first and **then** do her homework. After all, it didn't really matter **when** she did her homework, just that it got done. Meh, she didn't really want to think about it. As Lizzie went up to her room, Casey did the same and then spread out on her bed, pulling her backpack close and rifling through it. When she found what she was looking for, she made herself comfortable and opened up the envelope. _Let's see what's going on with Sam and Matt these days_, she thought to herself. It had been a while since she had gotten anything from them and as hard as she tried not to let it get to her, it had worried her a bit. How could she not? They were her friends. Friends who were like a thousand miles-if not farther-away fighting for their lives in a war zone who could be killed at any moment. So yeah, she worried at times. But at least she had something now which meant that she could relax a bit. She opened the envelope and pulled out the letter, smiling when she noticed a picture in the envelope. _Ah, I got more than a letter this time_, she thought to herself. And here she had thought that the pictures would stop once the two had joined the JTF. But no, she was still getting pictures of them. And she loved that. It made things more bearable. She took out the picture and laughed when she saw that it was a snapshot of Sam and Matt play-wrestling on the ground. _They're like big puppies_, she thought to herself as she put the photo aside and turned her attention to the letter.

**Hey Stage Girl. Not really a whole lot going on right now, which means that Matt and I are goin' a little stir-crazy as evidenced by the picture. But other than that, everything's fine. We're both in good health and neither one of us has even gotten a paper cut. Great. Now I've probably jinxed us.**

Casey couldn't help the laugh that escaped. Yeah, he probably had, but oh well.

**Have you been in any other recitals? If so, send pictures! We need a little normalcy here! We need to see some good. We're surrounded by bad, hard, and difficult, and we could use something to make us smile. You haven't mentioned your classes lately. They going okay? Any new favorites? How about books? Whatcha reading these days? Okay, I'll stop acting like a dork. And yes, I'm sure you can see exactly how Matt's acting.**

At this, Casey's laugh increased. Knowing Matt, he was probably rolling on the bed laughing. And to her, that was just hilarious. Who would expect a member of the Joint Task Force to be acting like a kid? Taking a breath to compose herself, she read on.

**But I don't care. I wanna know how you're doing. You haven't really said much in your last letters and I just want to make sure everything's going well. Hope it is. As I stated, things are going well here. Matt and I are doing good and we're keeping ourselves alive. And no, you're not getting this after the fact which means we're not dead. Crap. Gotta go.**

Casey shook her head, a smile on her face. _Oh, Sam_, she thought to herself. He could be nuts at times and this apparently was one of those times. But to be honest, she just didn't care. Sam was who he was and that was why she had grown to love him.


	18. Little Girl

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BookLover1182: Don't know if they'll ever meet in this fic. Sorry this isn't soon enough.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Flashpoint belongs to Ava Mar, Media Bell, Mark Ellis, and Pink Sky. Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. I only own the plot.

Sam was quiet as he and Matt came back to their base of operations. It had been one hell of a mission. But at least neither of them had been hurt this time around, so that was a plus. But that didn't mean that he wasn't tired. No, he was tired as hell and he just wanted to go to bed and crash. Hopefully, he'd be able to.

"I just want to sleep for a week," Matt said, breaking the silence.

"Same," Sam agreed. His bed sounded **so** good! They had been running ops for two weeks and they had just gotten back from their last one. Without another word, he went to his bed and sat down. Then, he lied down and closed his eyes. Yes, a nap would be just great. Hearing footsteps approaching, he cracked open an eyelid to see an officer approaching, mail in his hands. Without a word, the man handed their mail and Sam stayed on his back as he checked the envelope's address, smiling when he saw the name. He then opened it and pulled out the letter.

_Hey Sam. Nothing much going on these days. Just school and being a kid. Lizzie and I have gotten used to it just being us and Mom. Doesn't mean that we don't still miss Dad because we __do__. It's just gotten easier to accept that he and Mom aren't getting back together. It sucks but what else can we do? There's no use in believing otherwise._

_Aw, Kid_, he thought to himself. She was trying to pretend that she was just fine when she was hurting and missing her father. Didn't she realize by now that she didn't have to pretend with him?

_Okay, it hurts. I miss him. I want him and Mom to get back together. I want us to be a family again. A __real __family. Is that really so much to ask? But I know it's not going to happen. He and Mom fell out of love and there's nothing I can do about that. It's not like I can recreate their love. I tried. I tried to get them to talk about things and to make up. And in the end, he still chose to leave us. Will it ever stop hurting? Sometimes I think-sometimes I think it was __my__ fault. That I wasn't a good enough daughter. If I had been, maybe they would've stayed together._

_Oh, no, no, no, no, no, Kiddo. The divorce wasn't your fault_, he thought to himself. She was just a kid and there was nothing she could've done. Surely her parents wouldn't let her continue feeling this way.

_Intellectually, I know it wasn't my fault, but…a part of me still can't help but wonder even though we've gotten used to it just being the three of us. I mean, I want my dad. Is that so wrong? I want it to be how it was. It was so much better when it was the four of us. We were happy. Okay, maybe not in later years, but surely it didn't have to end like it did. Okay, I'll stop. I know it's pointless to wish for it to change. And yes, for the most part I'm used to it just being us. Doesn't mean I don't miss him. Okay, sorry to be a downer. I swear, I'm not like this all the time. Gotta do some homework now. Casey._

Sam blew out a breath as his eyes clouded. Well, this sucked. Yes, Casey and her family were apparently getting used to the fact that her father wasn't in her life anymore, but she was still hurting. She was fourteen now and even if she had accepted what had happened between her parents, she was still a little girl who wanted her dad. Wow. Now he was even more tired just thinking about this. With that, he yawned and closed his eyes, silently promising himself to write her back as soon as he got some proper rest.


	19. The Little Things

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BookLover1182: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. I've thought it over and they will probably never meet in this particular fic, though I may write a fic in which they **do** meet.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Flashpoint belongs to Ava Mar, Media Bell, Mark Ellis, and Pink Sky. Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. I only own the plot.

Casey dropped her book bag on the floor and then flopped onto her bed, closing her eyes. Today had sucked. It had really sucked. It was supposed to be her and Lizzie's weekend with their dad, but he called yesterday, telling their mother that he couldn't take them because of a big business deal. _How can he just dump us like this?_ she wondered. They were his children. Didn't he care about them anymore? Or at least Lizzie? How could he not care about Lizzie at least? Oh well. It wasn't like she could get him to change his mind no matter how hard she tried. And she **had** tried. Well, if she couldn't get their father to give a crap about them, she wasn't going to waste any more energy on him. No, she'd just go on with her life and put Dennis MacDonald out of her mind. After all, it wasn't like she was lacking a male role model. She had two: Sam and Matt. Okay, granted, they were like a thousand miles away, but it still counted. They gave her advice, listened to her rant, comforted her when she was done, teased her, treated her like a little sister…stuff like that. And really, that was all that she needed. Her dad was a real piece of work and she wasn't going to try to figure him out anymore. Pushing thoughts of her father away, she opened her backpack, pulled out a small envelope, and opened it, making herself comfortable as she did so.

**Hey Stage Girl. Sorry to hear that you're feeling so down. I can't even imagine what you and Lizzie must be going through. Fourteen's a tough age no matter ****what**** the circumstances and here you are trying to be strong for your sister.**

At this, Casey smiled. Yeah, Sam knew her real good. She **had** been trying to be strong for Lizzie even though the girl had seen right through her. Her younger sister really **was** wise beyond her years and she loved her for it.

**Let me reiterate that it is ****absolutely**** not your fault that your parents divorced and I'll repeat that for you as many times as you need. Sorry this is short but I'm dead tired.**

The girl shook her head. _He must've written this right after a mission_, she thought to herself. Sam really was amazing. He had taken the time to write her when he was busy keeping himself alive. It was the little things that he did-like writing her a letter-that made her look up to him more and more.


	20. Knowing Her

SHOUTOUTS/ANSWERS

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Flashpoint belongs to Ava Mar, Media Bell, Mark Ellis, and Pink Sky. Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. I only own the plot.

Sam's feet pounded on the desert floor as he ran towards the truck, Matt close behind him. _Damn, damn, damn!_ he thought as bullets flew all around them. Nothing had gone according to plan and now they were running for their lives. Wonderful. This was **definitely** staying out of his next letter to Casey. Well, not that he could've told her if he wanted to as it was against regs, but she was just a kid and she didn't need to know that he was in danger of being killed. Not that she was naïve by any means, but he wouldn't want to scare her. Okay, the truck. He needed to get to the truck. Once he did that, he was home free. Well, so to speak. He glanced behind him to make sure Matt was keeping up with him and then refocused his attention on getting to the truck. They couldn't let themselves get killed on a supply run of all things, but the way things were looking at the moment, it was a very real possibility. _How do we keep getting into these kinds of messes?_ he wondered. Seriously, how? It didn't make any sense. It was like they were freakin' cursed or something. Nope. He had to stop thinking like that. He just had to survive long enough for him and Matt to make it back to base. If he could do that, it'd be great. After several minutes later-and just about when he was positive that no help was coming-the sound of a copter's blades twirling broke the silence and he gave a silent sigh of relief. That was the team's copter. They were saved. A rope was let down and the two men quickly climbed it, getting into the aerial machine as soon as possible, the door shutting behind them.

"Glad to see **you**," Sam panted.

"I'll second that," Matt commented in the same tone. Then, there wasn't anything more said as the copter went on to their base camp, where they were met by their friends.

"Hey. You guys okay?" a guy asked.

"Yeah we're all right," Matt assured.

"That's good," they all said.

"Oh by the way, you guys got mail," another of the men stated, handing Matt and Sam some letters. The two went to their room and went to sit on their beds before opening the letters, resulting in a smile from Sam as he saw the familiar writing. _Yes, Casey wrote me_, he thought.

_Hey Sam. Let me just start by saying thanks for all of the encouragement you and Matt have given me. It means a lot. That being said, I'm doing okay. I mean, I'm not great by any means, but I'm handling_ _it, so that's something, right? I miss him but not quite as much. Keep the letters coming, they're keeping me grounded and they mean a lot to me. You and Matt make everything better._

At this, Sam smiled. It was good to know that they were having such a good impact on her. And at least she was sounding better now, not so down. To be honest, he had been a little concerned about her.

_I think about you guys every day and hope that you're okay. I know you can't tell me everything, but promise me that the two of you are doing everything that you can to stay safe. I worry about you. I know that sounds so stupid, but you guys have become family, like brothers, and the last thing I want is to learn that something's happened to you._

Sam's eyes clouded. _Wow. I didn't know she was feeling the same way_, he thought. He couldn't speak for Matt of course, but he had started to view Casey as another sister, much like Natalie. Okay, so they had never officially met, but that didn't matter to him. He knew how he felt. And to learn that Casey was on the same wavelength was kind of cool.

_I'm still in dance. I think someday, I'd like to dance professionally, like in a chorus group or something. I know it'll be a lot of hard work, but I'm up for the long hours it'd take. And besides, I'm always happier when I'm dancing. It's like everything else just fades away. Have you ever had anything like that? Or am I just sounding like a cheesy teen? Eh, I don't care. Dancing's what I like to do and I think I wanna pursue it professionally._

Sam chuckled. He could almost imagine her saying that out loud. _Wonder what her voice sounds like_, he mused. In the past year, they had only exchanged letters and pictures, so he **still** had no idea what she actually sounded like. But then again, he supposed that it didn't really matter. After all, it wasn't like they were ever actually going to meet each other. Would it be cool? Yeah? Was it possible? Probably not. But it was kind of cool to dream about. But that was all it was: a dream. They would never meet and there was nothing he could do about that. But even so, he felt like he knew her.


	21. A Note To Make You Smile

SHOUTOUTS/ANSWERS

Guest: Yes, I plan on writing more of this story. It just may take me a while depending on where my muse is at. Thanks, I'm glad you like it.

BookLover1182: Glad you like it. As stated, they are not going to meet. At least, not in this particular story.

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Flashpoint belongs to Ava Mar, Media Bell, Mark Ellis, and Pink Sky. Life with Derek belongs to Canadian Television and Disney. I only own the plot.

Casey flopped on her bed and pulled a stuffed animal close. She was **so** glad that the day was done. She just wanted to curl up and go to sleep. Everything that **could** go wrong, **did** go wrong. First, the power had gone out which meant that she overslept because her alarm hadn't gone off, then when she had gotten to school, she had discovered that she had studied the wrong chapters for a test. _Just glad school's finally over_, she thought to herself. Now she just needed a nap. Yeah, that sounded great. She lay down and closed her eyes, only to open them a moment later when there came a knock. _Great, now what?_ she wondered.

"Casey? You got a letter," her mother said from the other side of the door and the girl sat up. A letter? That meant Sam had written her.

"Come in!" she called and with that, the door opened and her mother came in and handed her the letter.

"It's your pen-pal," the woman stated.

"Thanks Mom," she responded. The woman smiled and walked out of the room as the girl turned her attention to the envelope and opened it.

**Hey Stage Girl, things are going okay. Not bad, not good, but okay. So, as you can guess, pretty typical. Or at least, as typical as someone in my position can be. Sorry. I'm not even making sense to myself right now, so I can just bet you're ****beyond**** confused.**

Casey found herself smiling sympathetically _He sounds tired_, she thought to herself, recalling other letters where he had rambled on a bit due to exhaustion. Not that she could blame him. He was probably running all over the place and saving lives. That would take a lot out of anybody. And yet, he was still taking the time to write to her. That was Sam for you. Always trying to make sure that he wrote her at least a couple of lines to her. It was appreciated, of course, but sometimes Casey wished that Sam would allow himself to rest first. Then again, with his line of work, he probably didn't get a chance to rest all that much and probably just wrote the letters as he was thinking of them. _Wonder if this is what it was like back in World War One or Two_, she thought to herself.

**We just got back-can't tell you from where, sorry-and Matt and I pretty much dead on our feet. He's out like a light and I'm writing this. There's not really much to say, just wanted to touch base with you. Keep the letters coming. They mean a lot to** **us and they keep us going. We love hearing from you. I'm tired now so I'm gonna crash. More soon.**

Casey smiled. _Wow. Poor guy_, she thought to herself. But that's what happened when you got all Samtastic like he was. But at least the note had made her smile and that was all that mattered.


End file.
